Amaravati, Oct 20 : Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu celebrated Diwali with his wife Bhuvaneswari by bursting firecrackers at their house at Undavalli here on Monday night.

After performing puja, the couple lit the lamps and burst the crackers in the courtyard.

Chandrababu Naidu took to 'X' to share his thoughts. 'Festivals are a part of our culture and traditions. Especially, our Telugu people celebrate festivals with great grandeur and enthusiasm. Every festival has its own background. We celebrate Diwali as a reminder of the victory of good over evil,' he posted.

'I celebrated the Diwali festival, which dispels darkness and spreads light, together with family members at the residence in Undavalli. I prayed to God that well-being may come to all the people of the state... that the lights of Diwali may become eternal... and that every day may be a festival for the people. Once again, Diwali greetings to everyone, seeking God's blessings and the cooperation of the people for the efforts being made to fill the state with the lights of progress,' he added.

On Sunday, the Chief Minister along with his wife had participated in Diwali celebrations at Punnami Ghat on the banks of Krishna River in Vijayawada.

He also visited Beasant road in Vijayawada and enquired with the people about reduction in prices of commodities with the recent GST reforms. He asked the traders about the variation in prices after GST reforms.

The Chief Minister interacted with petty traders including women vendors and asked about their income during the festival season. He spoke to a street vendor Durga Rao who used to sell jute bags and another vendor V. Krishna Rao who was selling footwear. He asked about the reduction in price of footwear after GST reforms.

While participating in the Diwali celebrations, the Chief Minister said that Andhra Pradesh should be developed as Artificial Intelligence hub. He said the proposed Google data centre in Visakhapatnam will provide services to several countries.

He claimed that that the NDA government within 16 months was able to put state's finances on fast track. He said it was implementing several welfare schemes under Super Six programme.

/IANS